Software Lead Weekly
Issue #527, 30th December 2022
This Week's Favorite
How to Get That Staff Engineer Promotion
6 minutes read.
"The first is cultivating a sense of ownership and responsibility beyond your specific work or even your immediate team’s work. [...] You don’t actually have to do everything (you’re only one person), but it is your responsibility to triage if it’s worth doing and if so, make sure that it’s on someone’s backlog to do." -- Joy Ebertz with many helpful tips and resources worth following if you consider the Staff Engineer path.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
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6 minutes read.
"The first is cultivating a sense of ownership and responsibility beyond your specific work or even your immediate team’s work. [...] You don’t actually have to do everything (you’re only one person), but it is your responsibility to triage if it’s worth doing and if so, make sure that it’s on someone’s backlog to do." -- Joy Ebertz with many helpful tips and resources worth following if you consider the Staff Engineer path.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
Culture
Has a Real 10x Engineer Vibe to It
1 minutes read.
My humble effort to help you start the weekend with a smile on your face.
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1 minutes read.
My humble effort to help you start the weekend with a smile on your face.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
Navigating Power Dynamics as a Manager
5 minutes read.
Pat Kua shares 5 tips to encourage your teammates to participate and lead, while you (thoughtfully) take a step back: "Over time, I realized that pretending a power dynamic wasn’t there wasn’t helping me lead. Recognize that there will always be a power difference between you as a manager and your team, and accept that each person will respond differently to that."
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
5 minutes read.
Pat Kua shares 5 tips to encourage your teammates to participate and lead, while you (thoughtfully) take a step back: "Over time, I realized that pretending a power dynamic wasn’t there wasn’t helping me lead. Recognize that there will always be a power difference between you as a manager and your team, and accept that each person will respond differently to that."
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
You Will Always Have More Problems Than Engineers: How to Deal With a Sad Reality
7 minutes read.
"When you’re overwhelmed with problems, ordering them isn’t the most important skill, filtering them is." -- Matt Schellhas with a must-read post when working for a successful company, where the backlog outgrows the team. It reminds me of Joel Spolsky's epic post, "Software Inventory." Also, Matt's way to appreciate progress is one that I see a lot of value for people who tend to always move to the next to-do item on their list: "The better way to measure progress is to ignore the problems and think about what we’ve built. What things can we do today that we couldn’t yesterday?"
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
7 minutes read.
"When you’re overwhelmed with problems, ordering them isn’t the most important skill, filtering them is." -- Matt Schellhas with a must-read post when working for a successful company, where the backlog outgrows the team. It reminds me of Joel Spolsky's epic post, "Software Inventory." Also, Matt's way to appreciate progress is one that I see a lot of value for people who tend to always move to the next to-do item on their list: "The better way to measure progress is to ignore the problems and think about what we’ve built. What things can we do today that we couldn’t yesterday?"
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
“I’m on It” - My Favorite Response
4 minutes read.
"I'm on it" is a powerful statement. It doesn't mean we don't need help or will work on it in complete isolation. It signals that you'll take care of the job to be done and deliver the desired outcome. There is no better response to create a sense of high agency. Now do what you said, and people will route bigger and bigger challenges your way.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
4 minutes read.
"I'm on it" is a powerful statement. It doesn't mean we don't need help or will work on it in complete isolation. It signals that you'll take care of the job to be done and deliver the desired outcome. There is no better response to create a sense of high agency. Now do what you said, and people will route bigger and bigger challenges your way.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
Peopleware
What’s the Second Job of a Startup CEO?
11 minutes read.
Moving from building a product ("Doer-in-Chief") in phase 1 to building a company ("Company-Builder-in-Chief") in phase 2 is a great way to capture the CEO role, as Ali Rowghani writes it. It's not clear cut if the company is smaller or seeks for a different growth trajectory, but it's still helpful to understand the phases of leadership required.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
11 minutes read.
Moving from building a product ("Doer-in-Chief") in phase 1 to building a company ("Company-Builder-in-Chief") in phase 2 is a great way to capture the CEO role, as Ali Rowghani writes it. It's not clear cut if the company is smaller or seeks for a different growth trajectory, but it's still helpful to understand the phases of leadership required.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
I'm in Year 20 of Building Companies. Here Are 13 Hard-Earned Lessons to Skyrocket Your Career (Thread)
4 minutes read.
Brett Adcock is an incredible entrepreneur and builder. My favorites: "Get quick wins weekly," "Do what you said you'd do," and "Show your ability to be decisive."
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4 minutes read.
Brett Adcock is an incredible entrepreneur and builder. My favorites: "Get quick wins weekly," "Do what you said you'd do," and "Show your ability to be decisive."
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
The Gordian Knot of Identity and Achievement
4 minutes read.
"If you had a manager that talked to you the way you talked to you, you’d quit." -- Many of us tend to look down on ourselves. Trying to get more things done without being successful. Trying to read more. To build more. To spend more time with our loved ones. To find new hobbies and form new habits. If you cannot be the "manager you need" for yourself, surround yourself with optimistic, empathic friends that can remind you how awesome you are. That's the greatest hack of all.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
4 minutes read.
"If you had a manager that talked to you the way you talked to you, you’d quit." -- Many of us tend to look down on ourselves. Trying to get more things done without being successful. Trying to read more. To build more. To spend more time with our loved ones. To find new hobbies and form new habits. If you cannot be the "manager you need" for yourself, surround yourself with optimistic, empathic friends that can remind you how awesome you are. That's the greatest hack of all.
Read it later via Pocket or Instapaper.
Share it via Twitter or email.
Inspiring Tweets
- Oren
P.S. Can you share this email? I'd love for more people to experiment and improve their company's culture.
P.S. Can you share this email? I'd love for more people to experiment and improve their company's culture.